The Rolling Stones’ former manager Andrew Loog Oldham has announced he’ll be a no-show at Thursday’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony after learning museum bosses have only allocated five minutes of the show to honor him and fellow svengali Brian Epstein.
The two music moguls will join KISS, Peter Gabriel, Nirvana, Hall & Oates and Linda Ronstadt among the Class of 2014, but Oldham plans to sit out the New York gala.
He recently told the audience during a talk at the Berlin School of Creative Leadership in Germany, “I think those people (Hall of Fame bosses) basically hijacked the name rock ‘n’ roll. I won’t be there… It’s a television show.
“Twenty years ago it was an incredible party in the Waldorf-Astoria… and then it became a business. I think it’s healthier to stay home.”
Asked to confirm he would not be a part of the ceremony by a fan last week, the 70 year old tweeted, “Like (the late) Brian Epstein I was not consulted as regards this matter & like dear Brian I will not be going (sic).”
He and Epstein are being inducted as non-performers as part of a Hall of Fame celebration marking the 50th anniversary of the original British Invasion as the Beatles and Stones conquered the U.S.
He adds, “The Hall has adjusted for the times and… I think it may have become an event for performers only and their fans. Rush last year, Nirvana and KISS this year. Now, for the Hall Of Fame to survive, it’s gone ‘Simon Cowell’ and that, unless you are a Rush or KISS fan, is a shame.”
Linda Ronstadt will also be a no-show at the induction ceremony after revealing she’s too ill to travel to the event, and KISS founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons have refused to perform after learning their current bandmates will not be honored alongside them.
Oldham isn’t the first inductee to boycott the event – Neil Young refused to turn up in 1997 when he was being honored as a member of Buffalo Springfield and the Sex Pistols and Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose also stayed away when they were inducted.

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